Overview

The New York Times–bestselling novel by the critically acclaimed author of Native Speaker and A Gesture Life.

At 59, Jerry Battle is coasting through life. His favorite pastime is flying his small plane high above Long Island. Aloft, he can escape from the troubles that plague his family, neighbors, and loved ones on the ground. But he can't stay in the air forever. Only months before his 60th birthday, a culmination of family crises finally ...

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Overview

The New York Times–bestselling novel by the critically acclaimed author of Native Speaker and A Gesture Life.

At 59, Jerry Battle is coasting through life. His favorite pastime is flying his small plane high above Long Island. Aloft, he can escape from the troubles that plague his family, neighbors, and loved ones on the ground. But he can't stay in the air forever. Only months before his 60th birthday, a culmination of family crises finally pull Jerry down from his emotionally distant course.

Jerry learns that his family's stability is in jeopardy. His father, Hank, is growing increasingly unhappy in his assisted living facility. His son, Jack, has taken over the family landscaping business but is running it into bankruptcy. His daughter, Theresa, has become pregnant and has been diagnosed with cancer. His longtime girlfriend, Rita, who helped raise his children, has now moved in with another man. And Jerry still has unanswered questions that he must face regarding the circumstances surrounding the death of his late wife.

Since the day his wife died, Jerry has turned avoiding conflict into an art form-the perfect expression being his solitary flights from which he can look down on a world that appears serene and unscathed. From his comfortable distance, he can't see the messy details, let alone begin to confront them. But Jerry is learning that in avoiding conflict, he is also avoiding contact with the people he loves most.

Editorial Reviews

The Washington Post

Whether you find the new book a joyous revelation, an ascent in Lee's career, or a betrayal and a wrong turn depends, I think, on how much you had invested in him as a spokesman for a particular ethnic experience, and in how predictable you like your authors. I appreciate a writer who's not overzealously committed to any one ideology or group, who likes to confound expectations and who feels expansive enough in his spirit and ambitions to encompass not just his close kinsmen but the infamous Other. With Aloft, Chang-rae Lee proves himself just such a writer. — Paul Di Filippo

The New York Times

Mr. Lee creates a pointillist portrait of three generations of a family as it has motored its way from blue collar immigrant hopes to bourgeois respectability to new money indulgence, and in doing so he gently nudges Jerry and his relatives into holding up a mirror to the American Dream in all its glittering and treacherous promise. — Michiko Kakutani

Publishers Weekly

Lee's third novel (after Native Speaker and A Gesture Life) approaches the problems of race and belonging in America from a new angle-the perspective of Jerry Battle, the semiretired patriarch of a well-off (and mostly white) Long Island family. Sensitive but emotionally detached, Jerry escapes by flying solo in his small plane even as he ponders his responsibilities to his loved ones: his irascible father, Hank, stewing in a retirement home; his son, Jack, rashly expanding the family landscaping business; Jerry's graduate student daughter, Theresa, engaged to Asian-American writer Paul and pregnant but ominously secretive; and Jerry's long-time Puerto Rican girlfriend, Rita, who has grown tired of two decades of aloofness and left him for a wealthy lawyer. Jack and Theresa's mother was Jerry's Korean-American wife, Daisy, who drowned in the swimming pool after a struggle with mental illness when Jack and Theresa were children, and Theresa's angry postcolonial take on ethnicity and exploitation is met by Jerry's slightly bewildered efforts to understand his place in a new America. Jerry's efforts to win back Rita, Theresa's failing health and Hank's rebellion against his confinement push the meandering narrative along, but the novel's real substance comes from the rich, circuitous paths of Jerry's thoughts-about family history and contemporary culture-as his family draws closer in a period of escalating crisis. Lee's poetic prose sits well in the mouth of this aging Italian-American whose sentences turn unexpected corners. Though it sometimes seems that Lee may be trying to embody too many aspects of 21st-century American life in these individuals, Jerry's humble and skeptical voice and Lee's genuine compassion for his compromised characters makes for a truly moving story about a modern family. Agent, Amanda Urban. Foreign rights sold in France, Germany, Holland and the U.K. (Mar.) Forecast: Comparable to Updike's later Rabbit novels and Begley's About Schmidt, Aloft broadens Lee's scope and should bump his sales and reputation up another notch. Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

Library Journal

In his third novel (after Native Speaker and A Gesture Life), Lee applies his remarkable storytelling skills to create a monstrous first-person narrator. Not that retired Long Island businessman and part-time travel agent Jerry Battle is a murderer, sexual predator, or any sort of criminal according to law. However, his defect is both serious and destructive: he is an emotional miser, distancing himself from others and keeping himself above the risks of emotional involvement. Not completely without insight, Jerry recognizes the irony and symbolism of his favorite pastime, soaring solo in his private plane-but only in clear weather. He could not be less prepared when virtually every element of his personal life goes haywire simultaneously: his longtime lover walks out, his dad disappears from an assisted-living home, his son dangerously overextends the family landscaping firm, and his pregnant daughter contracts a terminal illness. Jerry's graceless yet sometimes endearing attempts to cope with these disasters (and their attendant reminders of the bizarre death, decades before, of his beautiful Korean American wife) round out a masterly portrait of a disaffected personality. Unfortunately, the other characters, seen solely from Jerry's self-absorbed viewpoint, are often little more than two-dimensional foils for Jerry's worries and obsessions. Still, Lee's radiant writing style will please fans of his earlier fiction, and the plot will interest readers who liked Louis Begley's About Schmidt. Recommended for larger collections. [Previewed in Prepub Alert, LJ 11/1/03.]-Starr E. Smith, Fairfax Cty. P.L., VA Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

Booklist

...a brilliant and candid parsing of the dynamics of a family of mixed heritage [and] a ribald look at male sexuality, a charming celebration of the solace of good food, and a sagacious and bitingly funny critique of our times. (starred review)

Kirkus Reviews

An introspective widower rises above his "habit/condition of disbelieving the Real"-in this generously ruminative third novel. Its predecessors (Native Speaker, 1995; A Gesture Life, 1999) explored the comedy and pathos of assimilation into American culture with a compassionate precision here lavished on almost-60 Jerry Battle (born "Battaglia"), whom we first meet "aloft," in the small private plane to which he retreats from quotidian pressures. Not unlike the transplanted Asians of Lee's earlier books, he's an ingredient in a rich multiethnic mix. Since the drowning death (in the family pool) of his Korean-American wife Daisy 20 years earlier, Jerry has had a gratifying affair with Puerto Rican beauty Rita Reyes, now his ex-and maintained close if wary relationships with his son Jack (who runs, and has significantly expanded the Battles' landscaping business) and daughter Theresa, a literature professor engaged to, and pregnant by, Asian-American writer Paul Pyun. What energizes Lee's very deliberately paced fiction is the accretion of detail with which his closely observed characters' shared and separate experiences and worlds are created. We feel we know everything about decent, caring Jerry (still hungry for life-and quite reminiscent of several John Updike narrators), gutsy Theresa (whose serious illness threatens her pregnancy and her life), Paul's quiet strength, Rita's spirited independence, Jack's frustrating combination of profligacy and resilience, and-in a triumphant characterization-Jerry's ornery octogenarian father Hank, too alive to be contained by the assisted living center where he reluctantly resides or by Jerry's disapproving concern. Aloft's muted conclusioncontrasts tellingly with its opening image, as Jerry hunkers down in the hole dug for a new pool, at peace with his "finally examined and thus remorseful life . . . [and resolved that] I'll go solo no more, no more." Beautiful writing, richly drawn characters, and a powerful sense of life enduring in spite of all. A fine and very moving performance. First serial to the New Yorker. Agent: Amanda Urban/ICM

Booklist

Leslie's reading matches the superior writing. Almost immediately he assumes Battle's full persona; he is equally skillful with the other characters, using volume, pitch, nuance, and pauses to great effect. A fine pairing of a superior novel and an exceptional narrator.

From the Publisher

Leslie's reading matches the superior writing. Almost immediately he assumes Battle's full persona; he is equally skillful with the other characters, using volume, pitch, nuance, and pauses to great effect. A fine pairing of a superior novel and an exceptional narrator.

Related Subjects

Meet the Author

More by this Author

Chang-rae Lee is the author of Native Speaker, winner of the Hemingway Foundation/PEN Award for first fiction, A Gesture Life, Aloft, and The Surrendered, winner of the Dayton Peace Prize and a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize. Selected by The New Yorker as one of the twenty best writers under forty, Chang-rae Lee teaches writing at Princeton University.

Biography

Chang-rae Lee landed on the literary scene with Native Speaker, a detective story about much more than just another crime. Detective Henry Park grows too attached to those he investigates as he discovers the connection between broad social questions and his personal failings. Critics responded, and Lee's debut received a string of recognition, including a Hemingway Foundation/PEN Award. Biography/Critical Appreciation Everyone agrees that Chang-rae Lee is a writer to watch. His debut novel, Native Speaker, (1995) won the American Book Award and the Hemingway Foundation/PEN Award. Plus, two literary cornerstones, The New Yorker and Granta, named him one of the twenty best American writers under forty.

Lee and his family emigrated from Seoul, South Korea to the United States in 1968. His family settled in Westchester, New York, and Lee eventually attended Yale and the University of Oregon, where he earned his M.F.A.

Native Speaker is a story about a Korean-American detective, Henry Park, whose investigative eye is eventually turned upon himself. The novel takes a challenging look at Park's effort reconcile his two cultures in an even larger culturally diverse setting, New York City. The language is simple, yet the reader is allowed a deep and intriguing look inside the head of the main character, the politics that affect him, and his struggles with love and cultures. The New York Times called Lee's debut "highly original," and the Literary Review raved, "... Native Speaker seems like a new kind of novel, the plainsong of unassimilated man, and in the murmur of his nascent voice is the soft clash of borders."

In 1999, Lee's second novel, A Gesture Life continued the themes of identity and assimilation. Lee wrote the novel over the course of four years, although it was originally about the experience of a Korean "comfort woman," forced to sexually service invading Japanese soldiers. Lee traveled to Korea and interviewed surviving comfort women, but two years into the novel, one of the characters, previously considered a minor one, captured Lee's imagination and wouldn't let go. Remarkably, Lee abandoned everything he had written except for one character -- Doc Hata.

Franklin "Doc" Hata is a reserved, older physician, Korean by birth, raised in Japan, and now living in New York City. Only after much needling by his daughter, Doc Hata begins to reveal his painful secrets: his time as a medic in the Japanese army during World War II, his love for one of the Korean comfort women, and the guilt that has kept him silent for most of his life. It's an unforgettable story, and The New York Times called the book "... a work of astonishing psychological acuity and compassion."

With the 2004 release of Lee's Aloft, once again, readers are treated to a portrait of a man in the throes of a reconciliation. Readers who expect Lee's novels to deal exclusively with Asian Americans will be pleasantly surprised to see the author flex his writing skills with the creation of Jerry Battle, the semi-retired head of a (mostly) white Long Island family. On the ground, Battle is inundated with family bickering, his upcoming 60th birthday, and the mystery surrounding his wife's death. Aloft in his small private plane, Battle escapes all of this, although only temporarily. His is the story of how to cope with responsibility -- to the past, and to the unknown.

Lee a writer and a teacher, as well as the director of the M.F.A. Program at Hunter College of City University in New York City. Those fortunate enough to be his students get to learn from the man who knows the stuff of human nature -- that the aftereffect of any act is the core of every great story, and that even the most conventional characters can bear the weight of unconventional story lines.

Good To Know

"If I weren't a writer," Lee reveals in our interview, "I'd probably be working in the food and/or wine business, perhaps running a wine or coffee bar -- or even an Asian noodle soup shop."

Reading Group Guide

INTRODUCTION
At 59, Jerry Battle is coasting through life. His favorite pastime is flying his small plane high above Long Island. Aloft, he can escape from the troubles that plague his family, neighbors, and loved ones on the ground. But he can't stay in the air forever. Only months before his 60th birthday, a culmination of family crises finally pull Jerry down from his emotionally distant course.

Jerry learns that his family's stability is in jeopardy. His father, Hank, is growing increasingly unhappy in his assisted living facility. His son, Jack, has taken over the family landscaping business but is running it into bankruptcy. His daughter, Theresa, has become pregnant and has been diagnosed with cancer. His longtime girlfriend, Rita, who helped raise his children, has now moved in with another man. And Jerry still has unanswered questions that he must face regarding the circumstances surrounding the death of his late wife.

Since the day his wife died, Jerry has turned avoiding conflict into an art form—the perfect expression being his solitary flights from which he can look down on a world that appears serene and unscathed. From his comfortable distance, he can't see the messy details, let alone begin to confront them. But Jerry is learning that in avoiding conflict, he is also avoiding contact with the people he loves most.

Written with a captivating urgency, Aloft is a witty social critique of contemporary suburban America and a deft portrait of a man struggling to balance his responsibilities with his freedoms. It is the story of Jerry Battle learning to cope with life's messy details, and the redemption he finds when he finally chooses to immerse himself in them.

ABOUT CHANG-RAE LEE

Chang-rae Lee burst on the scene with Native Speaker, which won numerous awards, including the PEN/Hemingway Award. His second novel, A Gesture Life, established him as one of the preeminent writers of his generation. Now, with Aloft, Lee has expanded his range and proves himself a master storyteller, able to observe his characters' flaws and weaknesses and, at the same time, celebrate their humanity.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

Jerry's relationships with the three women in his life are complicated and inter-related. What were the happiest moments of the life he shared with Daisy? Why did Rita help Jerry raise Jack and Theresa when he denied her the opportunity to have children of her own? Why doesn't Jerry do more to help Kelly in her most desperate moment of need?

On the surface, Paul and Jack are completely different: Paul is a small, wiry bookworm, an out-of-work writer, while Jack is a natural-born athlete and manager of the Battle family business. But while the differences are apparent, both men practice a form of denial with regard to their relationships with their wives. How are both men governed by the demands of these relationships? Discuss the differences and similarities between Jack and Paul as they try to cope with the conflicts of their married lives.

Why is Theresa determined to have her baby—even at the cost of her own life?

When Jerry goes to Richie's house to look for Rita and is reluctantly drawn into a high-wager tennis match against him, he allows his plane, Donnie, to be the collateral with which he will play. Donnie is Jerry's favorite escape. Is his potentially sacrificing it enough to show Rita that he wants her back? Why does Rita decide to stay and help Jerry put his family back together again?

Discuss the metaphor of flight as it relates to Jerry's propensity for escapism and for distancing himself from the problems that arise in the world.

How does Jerry deal with Theresa's illness differently than with Daisy's?

When Hank sounds sick over the phone, Jerry admits to his disbelief in "the Real." Jerry continually tries to ignore "the Real," to float beyond it until the trouble has passed and someone else has dealt with it. How does this attitude affect his ability to raise Jack and Theresa? Theresa later praises Jerry for his parenting skills. Would Jack feel the same way toward his father? Does Jack, instead, pity himself? Why?

When Paul and Jerry are in Pop's bedroom watching TV, Paul explains that the problem with the world is that everyone is too self absorbed: "They think they can go anywhere and do anything, as if none of their actions has any bearing except on themselves." Jerry often characterizes himself in much the same way. Does he avoid feeling guilty by believing his problems originate with Daisy's death? Does he excuse all his family members of their faults with the same justification? How, if at all, does learning more about Daisy's last few hours change Jerry's opinions about himself?

How do you think Jerry characterizes Theresa's death? Was it his fault? Hers? How would Jerry view Daisy's death in contrast? What is your interpretation of the circumstances that lead to each woman's passing?

The novel begins with Jerry flying in his plane and ends with him stepping into a rectangular hole in the ground that will later be a pool, lying down, and looking up at the sky. Discuss the symbolism of the book's final image and how it relates to the metaphor of flight throughout the rest of the novel.

Your Rating:

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A lesson in humanity

Chang-rae Lee's "Aloft" serves as a poignant example for us to be human first, and be successful second. A young retiree assesses his life and legacy over the course of the novel. He realizes how his escapism and indifference to friends and family have embedded him in a series of unfortunate situations, symbolized most effectively by his love of the silent observational trips he makes while piloting his plane. Gradually, as he feels the life he wants slipping away, he throws himself into the task of re-building all his past relationships, with relative success. These lessons come subtly at times, and at others are quite blatant. All are padded by the author's voice, which emerges regularly as almost an amused third party, someone to read along with you, rather than the creator of the tale. Every word is purposeful. Every story told within the larger narrative is meaningful, reinforcing the main points or providing cathartic asides to take the pressure of the moment off for a bit. I came away from this book feeling renewed, refreshed, and wanting to make more from my life than I already have. Highly recommended.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

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Anonymous

Posted February 11, 2014

Eh.

The Phantom sounds like a Deadpool wannabe.

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Anonymous

Posted February 10, 2014

Good, overall

I love it! &hearts<p>Please excuse me while I fangirl.<p>It is great. A little bit vague, though it has detail. Stupendous concept! More! *Screams at you*<p>"MOARRRRRRRRRRRR!"

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Anonymous

Posted February 10, 2014

Good!

Its really good! A bit vague and hard to follow in places, but i was going fast and it was partly me. If you want an rp to join, join the sewoa rp at sewoa first res. We accept anyone and everyone. Very good! ([Blank])

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Anonymous

Posted February 7, 2014

Mystery

Oh yeah!!! Cliffie! This is great keep going!!

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Anonymous

Posted February 6, 2014

Awesome!

That story is really interesting so far! I really wanted to read on to see what happened next!

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Anonymous

Posted February 6, 2014

Violet

Great! And you are an author right now, as you have writen a story part already

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Anonymous

Posted February 6, 2014

The Life of The Phantom

The Life of The Phantom

Prologue

Phantom sat on the rooftop, gazing out across the ruined city with his "creepy" blood red eyes. Twilight had fallen across the many buildings, ruined and new, elthough the sirens, screaming, and many more disturbing sounds in the air did not cease. These days, they never stopped. Phantom remembered when things were different, much different. Agro City used to be a plave of entertainment, laughter, and peace. But that was before Razor came and ruined it all, ruling the city with an iron boot. 'Razor,' Phantom made a small, angry growling noise in his throat when he thought about that man. If anyone wanted to know why, they could just look around; Razor had ruined the city, turning peace into chaos. Phantom utterly and completely hated Razor, but not just for that one reason; there were many he could name. Razor had only one main obstacle, of which Phantom supported; the other obstacles Razor could deal with easily. That obstacle was The Phantom, an elusive assassin/thief. He stole weapons, cut off supplies, ambushed and killed many of Razor's followers, pretty much just anything to tick Razor off. Phantom smirked instantly, knowing who The Phantom was -- himself. Phantom shook his head to clear his complicated thoughts. He stood up and began to pace across the rooftop. His black assassin's uniform, black-as-night hair, and dark skin made him blend in with the growing darkness that blanketed the city. The moon cast an eerie glow over his dark form, making the metal on Phantom's weapons- including daggers that hung from his belt,the swords strapped over his back, the two hand guns strapped over his chest, and the small knives in his many hidden pockets -gleam dimly. "Well, time to work," Phantom murmured under his breath as night settled completely. He took a running leap and began to jump from rooftop to rooftop. After a while Phantom stopped to study his surroundings. He saw the building he was looking for and smiled. Phantom took a grappling hook from his belt and through it across the roof of the building. He jumped off the roof he was currently on and began to scale the new building. He reached the roof and removed the top of the air vent. Phantom crawled through stealthily, then stopped at one point, looking through the shafts. He studied the many weapons in glass displays, and frowned when he didn't see the one he wanted. 'Oh well, I'll just make do with what I have,' Phantom thought as he crawled out of the air vent and onto the roof again. He took another running leap and practically flew through the air to the nearest rooftop, continuing to move quickly but silently through the city. Soon Phantom paused again on a rooftop, spotting a large, silvery building a yard or two in front of him. 'Bingo,' He thought smugly. He moved closer, though not letting himself be spotted. Phantom removed one of his hand guns, holding it in his hnd, and looked through the glass. He still kept quite a distance away, so he wouldn't be seen by anyone there. Phantom finally saw his target -- one of Razor's head scientists. Phantom smirked, then aimed with his gun where the man stood in the building, making sure he wouldn't miss -- he couldn't afford to miss. "Razor, you made me suffer. Let's just say I'm returning the favor," He mumbled to himself, then pulled the trigger of the gun.

((Uh, so yeah, this is just an experiment...))

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good story

Great story - if a touch full of "waxing the bat", if you will. Outside of that, it has well-constructed twists. The reader feels empathy for the family - even though it takes awhile to get there. I enjoyed that journey! Ending - well done!

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5712884

Posted September 23, 2011

Not so great

My mom and I both read this book and we both feel that this book was a great waste of our time.

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Anonymous

Posted November 25, 2006

Engaging

Not as good as Native Speaker, but worth reading...

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

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Anonymous

Posted March 18, 2006

am I reading the same book as the reviewers?

This book was so boring I almost fell asleep at every other page. I saw it received such great reveiws that I thought the story would somehow develop to match the reviews. However, this book is all flowery descriptions and the story never develops...typical modern writing.

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Anonymous

Posted October 24, 2005

A normal and real story

The process of transformation of Jerry Battle, the 59 years old character who is an emotionally unavailable father, lover, and son, made me cry, and laugh, sometimes at the same time. The book took me on a great journey as I quietly applied Jerry's charactertics and struggle to the few people who are important, but distant, in my life. A great read.

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Anonymous

Posted July 22, 2004

ALOFT

Chang-Rae Lee has written an inspired novel that is eloquent in its lonely disengagement, which is what most of us experience, if we're honest, with our own heartbreaking families. I recommend this one for anyone who loved Jennifer Paddock's lyrical and similarly cathartic debut, A SECRET WORD.

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Anonymous

Posted August 8, 2004

Two Hits, Now a Miss

I liked Chang-rae Lee's first and second novels (NATIVE SPEAKER and A GESTURE LIFE) but ALOFT fails miserably to live up to their promise. The protagonist of ALOFT is Long Island resident, Jerry Battle, an Italian-American. While I applaud Lee for taking a chance in creating a character with an ethnicity totally different from his own (and it can be done and done well), in this case, it didn't work out. While A GESTURE LIFE (which portrayed the life of a displaced Korean man) was gracefully nuanced and the protagonist beautifully characterized, ALOFT is just plain awkward, clumsy and false in all respects. Jerry, who is going through a mid-life crisis, buys a small plane, not for travel or even for fun, but just because he wants to 'get out of the house.' This was laughably funny to me, despite the fact that ALOFT seems to want to be a 'dark' book and take itself so, so seriously. The huge subplot involving Jerry's daughter and her love life and medical problems wasn't interesting or even the slightest bit engaging. Instead of examining her feelings, Lee writes in a very melodramatic, soap operaish style that he seems to want us to find some meaning in. I'm sorry, but I just couldn't. Everything about ALOFT is very thinly drawn...the plot, the characters, the theme. The book actually reads more like an outline than the finished product. There was potential for interesting interaction, but Lee just never took advantage of it. The characters are as thin as is the plot. Lee identifies them only by name and ethnicity. Jerry's Italian-American, his deceased wife, Daisy, was Korean, his son, Jack and daughter, Theresa, is a Korean-Italian-American, his current girlfriend, Rita, is Puerto Rican. Rather than giving us characters with a rich and complex emotional life, Lee relies on ethnicity to do the job and, of course, it doesn't. We never really get to know the characters and truthfully, with the exception of Daisy, I really didn't want to know them. The dialogue (at least Lee wrote dialogue, too many of 'today's' authors aren't doing so) is awkward and clumsy and is used far too often for exposition. As thin and sketchy as ALOFT is, there are, surprisingly, times when it's very, very heavy-handed. These heavy-handed times occur mainly when Lee is attempting to make use of metaphor and symbol. Yes, Jerry does fly solo and we all know we all, ultimately, fly solo through life, but to use this metaphor in ALOFT was sort of like beating the reader over the head with the book. I can't relate well to fiction set in America, to fiction that embraces 'the American lifestyle' or American ideals, so maybe that was part of the problem, but I don't think so because I also know what makes a book 'good' and what makes one 'bad.' I think ALOFT is just a miserably bad book. That's not to say that Lee is a miserably bad writer. He's not. He certainly proved himself with his first two outings, especially A GESTURE LIFE. I can only recommend ALOFT to people who want something so thin to read they don't have to think, to people who aren't at all discriminating about their reading material or to those who love Lee's writing so much they want to read everything he writes, be it good or bad. I just hope Lee returns to form with his next book. Give ALOFT a pass and be happy about it.

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Anonymous

Posted July 18, 2004

response

i thoroughly enjoyed this book a great deal: his writing is always conscious, lyrical and uncanny. yet, i was disturbed by the last review on this site. first, mr. lee is NOT chinese. not all asians are chinese. and i believe that all asiasn are QUITE capable of greatness VERY well beyond the stereotypical limits you have mentioned. please. as i quote lee, control and correct your 'hegemonic colonialist' comments.

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Anonymous

Posted April 8, 2004

Gripping

Aloft is very gripping and moving. It deals with man heading towards the dusk of his life who is still somewhat unwilling to face the emotions of his life head on. Instead, he escapes. Even when love's leave him, he doesn't face it, he escapes. Even when his daughter (who is pregnant) could die, he doesn't face it, he escapes. I felt myself praying for him to just let go, just to feel something and simply be a part of what was happening to him, instead of running away from it. I read this book very quickly as it keeps you involved nearly every step of the way. I really enjoyed this book. I gave it four stars, instead of five, however, because part of me feels like this story has been done before. The writing is orginal and there are a lot of elements about the story that are unique in themselves, but still I couldn't help but feel like 'oh, this story again' Nonetheless, it is a story worth hearing again as it helps us as individuals cope with our everyday trial and tribulations. Might I advise that you also read Lucky Monkeys In The Sky (by Michele J. Geraldi.)Similar emotions are found in that book, similar 'running' away and incapability to deal with life's difficulties. I think her book is much more original than Aloft, though, as it deals with new problems, outrageous problems, that move you beyond what you thought words possibly could. Read Monkeys first, as soon as you can, because it is something you really should just read for your betterment, and then pick up Aloft and join the BN bookclub. Should be fun to discuss.

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Anonymous

Posted April 22, 2004

another excellent novel

I have been eagerly awaiting this novel since I finished 'A Gesture Life' and Mr. Lee did not disappoint. I think Mr. Lee is a master of pace and tempo as those two things mirror the main character's life and also become characters themselves. Just like in his two previous books, Jerry Battle is a person concerned with how he is perceived except that Jerry deals with this internally, trying to keep everyone else insulated away from his potential inner turmoil. Instead, what he has done is insulate himself from the full effects of the turmoil around him and from reality. Another brilliant character study and a thoroughly satisfying read. I guess it is back to eagerly awaiting another book.....

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